2005 w211 left front drive axle replace
 

Just found out I need to replace the left front drive axle on my 2005 e500 4Matic. Local dealer quoted $2350 for parts and labor. Looks like I can find the part on parts.com for much less than the dealer price.

Has anyone on here tried this project? Anyone know of any tutorials?

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

cv shaft
 

as i just got done doing said left side.. and right side shaft on a 05 e500 4matic im very fresh on the job
first.. left side is easier than right , right side is very hard to dislodge
second it pays 5 hours so not as easy as most makes seeing as how you have to remove the knuckle almost entirely.
used a hammer and a long extension to gently persuade it to let go of the transmission from underneath
other than that its pretty straight forward, I however am now having a problem with the abs light and the esp light on , they are related, i am looking to see if it could be the after market cv shaft i put in, or if for some Mercedes reason u have to reset the computer to let it know its changed, which makes no sense
but it shouldn't be related at all

My front driver side CV axle needs to be replaced soon since both the inner and outer boots are ripped. No symptoms of bad axles yet. My question is, does the 2008 w211 4matic require any special tools for the axle replacement? My local european specialist charges twice as much for the replacement than a "regular" auto shop. Anyone had any luck with reman CV axles from oreaily's because the dealership one cost $1100 vs $120.

G-d help me. I am having this same problem. $3200 for a car that is only worth a little more than double that. The car is very sentimental, however.

Can you not just repair it???

This is far out of my wheelhouse. I can only go by what the mechanics tell me. They say the parts are $2100 alone.

I got a good used one on ebay for less than $200. It will probably outlast the car.

UNDERSTOOD. why are they saying it needs to be replaced?

They said that it was damaged, "broken." Now, I don't see how it could be broken. It drives around fine. I don't even notice anything. There is no crunching noise, no difficulty turning, etc. My tire guys found the problem when I took it in for an alignment.

If the boots are leaking they can be repaired.....

It was all a lie. There was nothing wrong with the drive axle. The CV boot was repaired under warranty.

211 axles
 

These axles are unusual in their seal design at the inner CV joint. This makes them a liability to rebuild. New axles can have way less liability for the shop doing the work.